15 Movies That Saved An Actor’s Career

Life of a movie star is not always glitz and glamour. One flop and that could be the beginning of a streak that could derail your career. Yet some actors manage to defy the odds and revitalize their celebrity status. Take a look at the 15 movies that saved an actor’s career:

15. John Travolta (Pulp Fiction)

Among the many actors whose careers have suffered a fatal blow due to their own poor choices of movie roles, John Travolta is one of them. Once a promising actor who could be trusted by the producers for a leading role, the actor starred in several movies that were neither a critical nor a commercial success.

Following a string of flops, Travolta was offered the leading role of Vincent Vega by acclaimed director Quentin Tarantino which would become responsible for his career’s experienced a resurgence and was even nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor.

14. Ryan Reynolds (Deadpool)

Image Source: thewrap.com

It was incredibly unlikely to predict that Ryan Reynolds would ultimately become one of the most exciting movie stars in Hollywood. Beginning his career as a television actor and eventually starring in movies, it seemed that his acting career would take a downturn.

Movies such as Green Lantern, RIPD and X-Men Origins: Wolverine certainly did not do him any favors. Sternly believing that the role of Deadpool would do wonders for him, Reynolds was persistent in making the movie happened despite the studio exhibiting minor faith in the spectacular comic book character.

With a measly budget of $58 million and an R-rating, Deadpool did the unthinkable and made $500 million at the box office in less than two weeks. Meanwhile, Reynolds would enjoy a tremendous amount of success and would experience it all over again with Deadpool 2.

13. Al Pacino (Sea of Love)

Image Source: fanpop.com

Even the most prolific actors of Hollywood eventually face a belligerent period amidst their career. Sometimes, it just takes one bad movie to call it quits and that is exactly what happened with Al Pacino once he starred in Revolution.

The movie was such a box office disaster that Pacino took a hiatus from acting ad reverted back to stage performances. Four years later, Pacino was back in the game by starring in Sea of Love which received overwhelmingly positive reviews.

Once his acting career became steady, the actor would gradually get offers for amazing roles and three years later, Pacino would bag the Academy Award for Best Actor by starring in Scent of a Woman.

12. Chris Pratt (Guardians of the Galaxy)

Image Source: variety.com

Even with fourteen years of acting experience, Chris Pratt’s career remained stagnant. Known as the guy who could be trusted to pull off supporting characters and minor roles, the zenith of his acting career was his role of Andy Dwyer in comedy show Parks and Recreation.

All that drastically changed when he starred as Star-Lord in Guardians of the Galaxy but it is often overlooked that Pratt was initially reluctant to play the role and even turned it down at first. The actor had given hopes of ever starring as the leading man in action movies due to his failed auditions for Avatar and Star Trek.

For the role of Star-Lord, the then-overweight actor underwent rigorous training and diet plan to lose 60 pounds in six months and following the success of Guardians of the Galaxy, Pratt had become a fixture in Marvel Cinematic Universe and the Jurassic World franchise.

11. Robert Downey Jr. (Iron Man)

Terrible choices in movie roles and real life forced Robert Downey Jr. in a downward spiral. After witnessing his movies flop and high-profile arrests due to drug abuse, it was a shame to categorize the brilliant actor as one of the many examples of self-destruction.

Just when it seemed that Downey Jr. has permanently hit a brick wall, he miraculously managed to experience a career resurgence by getting sober and would star as the titular character in Iron Man in 2008. The actor valiantly established himself as one of the most bankable stars in the business and is still the leading star of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

10. Amitabh Bachchan (Zanjeer)

Image Source: scroll.in

While he is without a doubt one of the biggest A-listers in Bollywood alive today, it is often overlooked how much of a struggling actor Amitabh Bachchan was during his early years.

By the age of 30, the actor was still trying his luck in Bollywood and it seemed that fate was not being too kind to him. In fact, by that time, he had twelve movies that were flops and only two were hits. Once he starred in Zanjeer, he made it quite clear to India that a new face is about to dominate the box office.

9. Drew Barrymore (The Wedding Singer)

Not all child actors are capable of transitioning into a mega-star in their adult life. The same case was expected from Drew Barrymore. Best known for her role of Gertie in E.T the Extra-Terrestrial, the actress fell on hard times for her mediocre movies as an adult.

Her battle with drug addictions only damaged her career but after becoming sober and starring in The Wedding Singer as Julia Sullivan with none other than Adam Sandler, a star was reborn.

8. Mark Ruffalo (The Kids Are All Right)

Before starring in The Kids Are All Right, Mark Ruffalo was comparatively an obscure actor yet there is much more than meets the eye. The actor had been struggling for years and his personal life was not sunshine and rainbows either.

His family went bankrupt and he spent a decade auditioning for numerous movie roles that he failed to get. His look soon changed when he starred in The Kids Are All Right and even got an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor.

With an Oscar-worthy performance under his belt, Ruffalo made his mark in Hollywood and his very next film was the Avengers in which he starred as the Hulk; making him one of the most essential pieces of the puzzle that is the Marvel Cinematic Universe.